Belle is back!
Belle is living the London dream. She resides in the most desirable post code, she frequents the best restaurants, she shops in the funkiest boutiques, she hangs-out in ‘undiscovered’ bars and cafes and her preferred mode of transport? – the incomparable black cab. Belle is glamorous, intelligent and witty, but there is one thing that sets Belle apart from other successful career women her age… Belle is a high class escort.
In Season 4, Belle takes on a new relationship with best friend Ben and the new role of managing Stephanie’s escort business. The stakes have never been higher for Belle – accepting Ben’s offer of a lasting relationship means that Belle has a real chance of happiness; but Ben is her one true friend and if she messes up, she’ll lose him forever. And with Stephanie in prison for her dodgy finances, Belle finds herself being an - albeit reluctant - Madam, whilst also becoming the unlikely guardian of Stephanie’s innocent 19 year old daughter, Poppy.
As Belle starts to manage other girls – including the unmanageable Dominatrix, Charlotte – she still finds time for some new, unmissable clients - The Virgin, The Adult Baby, The Wrestling Fetishist and, don’t miss, Count Dracula himself…. But as Belle exceeds in her professional life, her personal life starts to fall apart …
A series of misunderstandings with loyal, loving Ben, the unravelling and corruption of ‘good girl’ Poppy, and the introduction of dangerous and alluring vice cop Harry, all force Belle to question who she really is and what she wants her future to be.
Will she give up ‘Belle’ for Ben and commit to being just ‘Hannah’ or will she cut all ties and throw herself into the world of prostitution forever?
Watch this season to find out!
Episode 1 (Julie Gearey)
Belle’s back! But with a new business proposition, an uninvited house guest, a challenging client and the all important question hanging over her head – should she commit to best friend Ben? – Belle’s life has never been so complicated.
Episode 2 (Richard Hurst)
Has Belle taken on more than she can chew? As the reality of being a ‘Madam’, a girlfriend, a chaperone and a high class escort hit home, Belle struggles. And when she meets Ben’s Mum there’s an even bigger shock in store for Belle.
Episode 3 (Simeon Goulden)
Belle’s ability to separate work from pleasure is tested when she meets an alluring and dangerous new client. Meanwhile, Poppy’s curiosity gets the better of her… and she’ll wish it hadn’t.
Episode 4 (Laura Neal)
Belle is determined to help Poppy come to terms with the recent revelations, but Poppy has other ideas. And a cruel trick from dominatrix Charlotte leaves Belle…. somewhat holding the “baby”….
Episode 5 (Simeon Goulden)
Having fallen out with Ben, Belle is determined to leave behind her complicated London life as she arrives in New York to work on her own movie. But the movie isn’t quite what she’d hoped and Belle soon starts to miss Ben. Meanwhile, Ben has his hands full with the increasingly minx-like Poppy.
Episode 6 (James Graham)
There’s a nasty shock in store for Belle when she arrives home from New York which leaves her in fighting spirits. She unleashes the closet wrestler in her client and confronts dominatrix Charlotte. But relations with Ben have hit a new low - can Belle and Ben get over this?
Episode 7 (Dan Sefton)
Belle throws herself into a vampire role play, but the appointment comes to a sticky end. Meanwhile relations between Belle and Ben are still frosty and with predatory Harry back on the scene and minx-like Poppy never off the scene, will temptation get the better of them?
Episode 8 ( Nancy Harris)
The series comes to a climatic end when Ben asks Belle to give up her job. Belle is thrown into turmoil and life is further complicated by the presence of irresistible Harry and a client who looks… familiar. It’s decision time for Belle. Will she choose Ben or the job?
BILLIE PIPER
Secret Diary of a Call Girl, produced by Tiger Aspect Productions /Silverapples Media/MF Management for ITV, has proved one of the most popular dramas of the last decade – right around the world. Viewers in virtually every country of the globe just cannot get enough of Belle, the marvellously charismatic call girl played with such wonderful magnetism by Billie Piper.
Based on the best-selling, real-life diaries of an upmarket escort, Secret Diary of a Call Girl allows us a deeper look into the world of the glamorous and intelligent Belle and has gained ratings in excess of two million viewers in the UK alone.
But adhering to the old showbiz maxim – “always leave ‘em wanting more” – the producers have made the wise decision to quit while they are ahead: this fourth series of Secret Diary of a Call Girl will be the last.
So what does this season hold in store for Belle? Will she finally settle down with her best friend Ben (Iddo Goldberg)? What will be her relationship with the smouldering but dangerous policeman Harry (Paul Nicholls)? How will she cope with looking after Stephanie’s (Cherie Lunghi) wild-child teenage daughter Poppy (Lily James)? Finally, will Belle go out with a bang?
Billie, a woman who is just as beautiful, clever and funny off screen as on it, begins by explaining where her alter ego is at the start of the fourth series. “Belle has just come back from one of her many exciting, luxurious adventures, and she’s returned to mayhem again really. Ben is endlessly knocking on the door - quite literally! - to see if they will unite and be in love once more. And that’s always a possibility with them.”
Also, adds the widely loved actress, “Belle has a new home. It’s her new sanctuary, or that’s what she hopes it will be, but in fact it’s invaded by various different characters and completely totalled by the end of the show! She’s still working steadily as an escort, but also she has Poppy now. Poppy is Stephanie’s daughter, and so she’s basically taking care of a teenager. Amidst all of that she has Harry ... “
The actress, who has also taken starring roles in Doctor Who, Mansfield Park, The Ruby in the Smoke, The Shadow in the North, Canterbury Tales: The Miller’s Tale and Much Ado About Nothing, goes on to reveal that Belle is drawn to the seductive riskiness that Harry embodies.
“Harry’s this really shady character,” says Billie. “He’s Stephanie’s tame copper, and he encourages Belle’s wild side. So she works with him initially, and he pays her for her time and services, but then suddenly that starts to develop into something slightly different and more intimate ...”
Belle, who in her personal life goes by her real name of Hannah, is soon plunged into a terrible dilemma about which lover to choose. “Harry appeals to her wilder side, and Ben is far more conventional. So for Belle, it’s like Devil-Angel and endlessly conflicting. She’s kind of ruined by them both really by the end.
“She’s torn between the two of them. She knows the right thing to do is to be with Ben and settle down and give up whoring and start living in the real world. But then she’s tempted by this slightly forbidden fruit really. Harry appeals to the naughty Belle, while Ben appeals to the more sensible Hannah. It causes some sadness actually. It’s quite destructive, the whole thing. It becomes quite a love triangle, and obviously she’s lying to everyone, including herself, about what she really wants.”
The great thing is, Secret Diary of a Call Girl does not shy away from showing the toll Belle’s job takes on her. Billie reflects that, ”Her work is starting to have a direct impact on who she is as a person. She’s entering that period in life where you can’t just go out and be mad and naughty with absolutely no consequences. It’s called growing up, I suppose.
“Obviously, her profession is a strange one, and it’s sad at times and full of heartache and insecurity and loneliness. What she’s having to decide is whether she wants a lifetime of clients and madness and sex and a crazy, wild lifestyle. She’s having to weigh that up against things like children and family and love and friendship and unity and all of those things. And so, by the end of the show, you’re just waiting to see which one she finally chooses.”
Belle continues to strike a chord right around the world. Billie assesses why. “I think people like the show because it is so far removed from most people’s lives. It’s a completely alien concept to most people, prostitution. In the way we present it, it’s slightly strange and fantastical. But at the heart of it, the show asks some really hard-hitting questions, and I think we address that more now in series four than we have ever done before. Plus, it’s fun. It’s silly and it can be completely ridiculous at times. It makes people laugh – and that’s great!”
Making Secret Diary of a Call Girl has clearly been a tremendous experience for the actress, but nonetheless Billie believes this is the right moment to end it. “I think we’ve certainly reached a point where the stories could potentially peter out if we carried on,” she muses. “I think we’ve pretty much been everywhere with the client/escort stories, and as that’s the heart of every episode, you wouldn’t want to exhaust it to the point of just complete ridiculousness and seediness.”
The actress closes by underlining how much she will miss Secret Diary of a Call Girl. “I feel really sad it’s all over. There are certain aspects of the job I won’t miss. The sex stuff is fine and silly, but sometimes you just want to sit in your tracksuit bottoms and chat on the set instead of like endlessly prancing around in your knickers trying to be sexy when you feel like rubbish. That kind of stuff I won’t miss!
“But I will miss the humour of the show, I will miss the fact that it’s unlike any job I’ve ever done and probably will ever do. I will miss the camaraderie of the crew and the cast. It sends us all slightly mad, we slightly lose our moral compass when we’re filming, but that basically makes for good, good jokes. They’ve been really good times.”
Billie can rest assured that we will miss Secret Diary of a Call Girl just as much as she will!
IDDO GOLDBERG
The actor Iddo Goldberg plays Belle’s unerringly loyal and non-judgemental best friend, Ben. It is clear to everyone - except Belle (who away from her job is called Hannah) - that they would be perfect together. Iddo explains that in the fourth series Ben attempts to persuade Belle that they could make a beautiful couple.
According to the actor, “Ben is determined to get his life together, and he feels that the only thing that’s missing is Hannah. He wants to get Hannah on his side and get on with his life. Throughout the show, he’s been quite lost, and in the last series he went a bit off the rails. But this year he feels like he’s got an idea about what he wants and the main thing he wants is Hannah.”
Iddo goes on to outline how Ben attempts to convince Hannah to be with him. “He sets about trying to win Hannah by really challenging her. I don’t think he’s challenged her in the past as much as he does in this season. He’s just really honest with her. Ben’s always been OK with what she does; he’s always just been attracted to who she is inside. But this time he really avoids the lies - he just doesn’t take any crap this year basically.”
Many obstacles lie in the way of Ben and Belle’s love, however. In this series, for instance, Poppy moves in with Belle and makes a serious play for Ben. Iddo observes that, “At the beginning of the series Ben is so focused on getting Hannah and making their relationship work. But then there’s this bombshell of Poppy!”
For Iddo, one of the highlights of working on Secret Diary of a Call Girl has been collaborating with Billie. The actor, who has also appeared in Little Britain, Nathan Barley and Attachments, underscores what a huge fan he is of his co-star. “Billie’s really, really good at her job,” beams Iddo. “She can take quite a dark moment and, and colour it. She makes very, very unobvious choices. She’s given Hannah a great, a great life.”
He carries on that working with Billie is, “An absolute laugh. We have light scenes where we muck around all day. Then there are scenes where we have to delve quite deep into ourselves. Then we won’t say anything to each other - we’ll just be getting our heads together. You can’t help but have a great relationship with someone you’ve been working with for quite a while. I really enjoy it.”
The only thing about making Secret Diary of a Call Girl that the actor has found difficult is shooting the sex scenes. Iddo says that, “They’re always uncomfortable because you’re working and you’re trying to tell the story through that scene. You don’t want to touch someone in the wrong place. It’s always awkward, and it’s got to look euphoric. I think it’s just being aware of the other person and respecting their space and that other person respecting your space.”
Iddo goes on to weigh up why the show has been such a worldwide hit. “Aside from it being visually appealing and aside from the sexual element, which obviously sells TV and film, there is the comedown from Belle’s job. You don’t often get to see that - the darker hours of someone who lives such a promiscuous life. Especially in this series, it gets quite dark, and I think that’s good. That’s what we all set out to do from the beginning.”
Finally, will Iddo miss Secret Diary of a Call Girl? You bet! “I miss it already - we only finished last Friday! I won’t miss getting up at five in the morning, getting washed and waiting for the car to come and get me. But we’ve had a lot of fun. I’m going to miss it for sure.”
Join the club!
PAUL NICHOLLS
Paul Nicholls takes the role of Harry, a dodgy police officer who keeps an eye on what Stephanie’s call girls are up to. He meets Belle and a steamy relationship soon develops between them.
The actor, who has also played Joe Wicks in EastEnders, begins by talking about what makes Harry tick. “He's an undercover copper who doesn’t stick to the law, let’s say. He really makes up his own rules as he goes along. Then he meets Belle. He's been observing her for a while – he’s been watching the backs of the call girls.”
Paul, who has also starred in The Passion, Clapham Junction, The Canterbury Tales, The Trench, City Central and Harley Street, expands on why there is an instant connection between Harry and Belle. “I wouldn’t say he falls in love with Belle, but he recognises something in her that he's got.”
“She's got this double life, hasn’t she? She's trying to be two people. She's trying to have a normal life with a boyfriend and her beautiful home and to be one person. Then she's got this completely other life where she really enjoys doing the job – it really excites her. Harry basically wants that part of her. He recognises that part of her in himself, because he does the same thing. He's got two lives, too. He's very bored by his daily life, and he just needs excitement. He needs to feel alive and not restricted.”
Paul adds that Harry is clearly quite smitten with Belle. “There is a real sexual passion that is driving the relationship, but he doesn’t care what she does for a living. He doesn’t want her to change anything about who she is. He just wants to be with her and to have her in his life. Basically he's saying to her, ‘I accept you completely as you are. Take me’.”
The actor found working with Billie a complete pleasure. “She’s absolutely amazing,” Paul enthuses. “Sometimes she’ll just do something in a scene and I’ll think, ‘Oh, that was fantastic. Wow!’ I’m a big film fan, and I like watching really decent acting. Watching Billie was a great experience because she's just so good. I think she's brilliant.”
He says Billie was particularly helpful during their more intimate scenes. “When you have to grab people’s bodies on camera, you always feel like apologising afterwards. But that’s a normal day on Secret Diary. It’s a major part of the script. But Billie made me feel very at ease because she's done four series of this and she's very comfortable with it now. I was nervous, if I’m honest, but she was great. She was just laughing and joking, and I thought, ‘Actually, this is alright!’”
Paul was also impressed by the high calibre of the scripts on Secret Diary of a Call Girl. “If you’re having a good year, you get sent scripts. But a lot of the stuff you read and just go, ‘Oh God, that’s not very good.’ When I read the script for Secret Diary, though, I thought, ‘This is really good.’ Also, I loved the part, and luckily I got it!”
Paul has obviously relished Secret Diary of a Call Girl – and he is delighted that his friends feel the same way. The actor takes up the story. “I was the best man at my best friend’s wedding up north recently. Everyone was asking, ‘What you doing? Are you working?’ And I replied, ‘Yeah, I’m doing Secret Diary of a Call Girl.’ And everyone lost their minds! They all said, ‘Oh, we adore that show.’ You had got these big, gruff northern geezers with pints in their hands going, ‘Oh, I bloody love that show. It's cracking!’”
Hear, hear!
LILY JAMES
Lily James portrays Poppy, the vivacious, yet innocent teenage daughter of Stephanie (Cherie Lunghi), Belle’s madam. When her mother is jailed, Poppy goes to stay with Belle – and unleashes all sorts of trouble!
Lily, a very sparky young actress, gives us a run-down of where Poppy is at the beginning of the fourth series of Secret Diary of a Call Girl. “Poppy is 19. She comes back from university to discover her mum’s not there, and so she moves in with Belle. She is completely naïve about the fact that her mother runs a brothel and that Belle is a prostitute. When she finds out, Poppy goes a little crazy.
“There’s a huge amount of drama. When Poppy finds out about her mum, it destroys her world for a short time. It’s not a nice thing to look through your mum’s drawer and find big pink vibrators. I don’t think any child wants that!”
The actress, who has also appeared in Just William, carries on that, “Poppy’s life is shattered really. She thinks everything’s perfect, and then all of a sudden she realises that everyone’s been lying to her, that nothing she thought was real is real. So she goes out and gets completely hammered in a bar, picks up a guy, takes him home and dot dot dot!”
To complicate matters further, Poppy falls for Belle’s on-off boyfriend, Ben. “Poppy idolises Ben,” Lily explains. “When she realises that everything’s gone wrong with her mum and Belle, she leans on him. He’s nice to her which she mistakes for affection. So she begins to pounce on him and try to kiss him at every available moment – only to be shot down every single time.”
So how does Belle react to Poppy making a play for Ben? “Belle’s unaware of it until Poppy plays a few tricks which in turn end up in a big showdown,” reveals Lily, who recently finished studying at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. “Poppy has to own up that she’s been playing these games and that when she had appeared to be in bed with Ben, nothing actually happened. Then everything goes a bit insane!”
Perhaps Poppy is envious of the great relationship that Ben and Belle enjoy. “I think their relationship on the show is just amazing,” Lily beams. “What every girl wants is a best friend like that who then becomes her boyfriend and just adores her and loves and looks after her.”
Poppy goes through a lot – but for the actress that was one of the chief attractions of appearing in the drama. “That’s why I’ve loved the part so much. There is this big revelation and then a big change in Poppy. It’s about her growing up and discovering real life and how she deals with it.”
Lily is a huge fan of Secret Diary of a Call Girl. She thinks it works so well because it communicates such an unalloyed sense of fun. “It’s a great show,” the actress beams. “It’s fun, it’s wacky, and it’s sexy - but in a great way. It’s not gratuitous – it revels in sex and fun. I don’t think the show’s sleazy at all. It laughs and enjoys these weird fetishes that people have. I don’t think it’s ever too dirty - It’s all done with such fun.”
The actress proceeds to consider why Secret Diary of as Call Girl has been an immense success right around the world. According to Lily, “The reason why the show has got such international appeal is because there’s just a sense of mischief about it. It oozes sex, sexuality, sensuality and fun.”
“Also, you see all these different sides to Billie’s character. She’s this sexy confident Belle , and then there is Hannah, who’s trying to figure out what she wants to do. There’s a lot of drama for Belle as she has to choose between what her heart and her head want.”
Lily goes on to sing Billie’s praises. “Billie is just an absolute joy on screen and off screen, and I think that’s infectious. She’s just awesome - and such a laugh. Working with her has been incredible and more than I could ever have imagined. I’m a young actress beginning my career, so to be able to watch her work has been completely invaluable. I’ve leant loads from Billie. I kept asking her for advice and how she prepared for characters and what she did, so it’s been just great. I wouldn’t have wanted to work with any other actress on my first job. Billie Piper is the one!”
The actress concludes that she has had the time of her life on Secret Diary of a Call Girl. “Being on the show has been an absolute dream. I’ve had the best time ever. I hope that things will come of it. Fingers crossed!”
Source: ITV
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